Review of:The Incredibles (2004)
Director:Brad Bird
Rating:PG for action violence.
Starring:Craig T. Nelson, Holly Hunter, Samuel L Jackson, Jason Lee, Elizabeth Peña
Ever wonder what kinds of lives those Superheroes really lived when you weren’t reading about them in that latest comic or viewing their latest battle on Television? The film‚ The Incredibles explores this part of being a superhero with hilarious results. Bob Parr (the alter ego to Mr. Incredible) has been forced to put down the mantel of superhero by frivolous lawsuits‚ and humankinds mistrust of superhuman powers. Now married with two children of his own‚ Mr. Incredible must live the life of a normal man. Mr. Incredible is living the sort of dulled down life (he’s an insurance salesman) that many people are living today. He’s stuck in a job that he doesn’t like‚ and what makes it even worse is that he knows the job he would be happy doing‚ he just can’t do it.
When you add to that the fact that Mr. Incredible now has a family which is depending on him to bring home the bacon‚ you have the dynamics of many real life families.
And what a family it is! Mr. Incredible is married to Helen‚ a former superhero in her own right who can stretch to lengths bodies aren’t supposed to‚ as well as two children. Dash‚ my personal favorite‚ who is his super fast son‚ and his daughter who can form force fields at will. They aren’t allowed to use their superpowers in public for the very reasons that their father can’t‚ but when a super-villain starts reeking havoc his family must come together and fulfill the destiny put out for them.
This film is yet another collaboration between Disney/Pixar‚ but in my own eyes this doesn’t stand up to their earlier projects. Everything seemed right in the film‚ but the glamour of this type of 3D cartoon is starting to wear thin. If I stand this film besides it’s predecessors the one thing I can say for certain is that it is not as funny. Everything else about the film is right on.
The dynamics of the family are probably the most enjoyable part of the film‚ and you can tell that a lot of time was spent on each personality. Mr. Incredible‚ the slightly over weight superhero who would love to relive the old days‚ but cannot because of the needs of his family. His wife‚ who is just trying to keep everything together‚ and the two children. The voice of Dash is straight on‚ and the realistic looks of moodiness on his sisters face is almost frightening‚ but I must say that many of their powers seem to be carbon copies of the Fantastic 4.
This film is still highly recommended.
